The turtles enters the lair after a night patrol going wrong…

"Mikey, how many times do I have to tell you, a ninja works best in the dark!" Leo practically yelled at his younger brother.

All four turtles was covered in some thick, smelly, and very sticky brown slime, and all because one stupid little turtle wanted to play hero.

"I know…" Was all he managed to say, as he looked at his partly brown feet. He didn't know it was gonna end like it did, and even if he did, he wouldn't risk some innocent girl getting all slimy, she was way too cute for that.

"Then why didn't you?! Why couldn't you just focus for once, instead of running of by your own? Isn't having one impulsive turtle in the family enough, do we really need two?"

"I- I just did what I though was right! I didn't think, I just acted!" Mikey replied, clearly feeling bad about what happened, but in the same time feeling a bit proud of himself. He had managed to safe a young girl from a dip in, whatever this stuff covering from head to toe was, and even though he sacrificed himself in the proses, it still counted as worth it. Now the part where he couldn't get out of the sticky stuff, and ended up pulling his brothers down with him was the part he felt guilty over. And the fact that the girl didn't thank him, put instead pointed and screamed at him wasn't too funny either.

"No Mikey, you didn't think, and that's the problem. How can I trust you to do anything, when all you do is the opposite of what I tell you to do? As far as we know, this yucky scum might be really dangerous!" Leo yelled even louder than before. It didn't suit him, he wasn't the kinda turtle to shout at his little brother, he was the calm one, the one who had to stay focused, and not lose his head, but he did, and it was a scary sight. Sure, he would get mad at Raph all the time, but that was different.

He knew Raph had problems with anger, but at least he seemed to actually try and confront it, tried to stop himself before hurting someone, and only really used it when he needed to, while Mikey was a whole other matter. Mikey didn't try.

He had the potential to become a great ninja, but instead of working for it, he just gave up. Whenever something needed his attention, his mind would be in a whole other universe. He didn't focus, he didn't concentrate, he would just do whatever he though would be the best way of doing it. Sometimes it would work out, but at most times it wouldn't, and he or someone else would get hurt because of it. Mikey knew that, he knew that showing a human the real you was incredibly stupid, but none the less, it felt right.

He just wanted a human friend, a friend who was his, and his alone, and not someone he had to share with any of his brothers. Donnie has April, Raph has Casey, and Leo has Karai, or at least he had, until the whole Karai turning into a giant snake happened. Maybe that was why Leo was so mad lately?

Nevermind, all his brothers had a human they could go to when they needed someone who wasn't family, but he didn't. He was the most extroverted of then all, the one who needed the attention the most, and the one who felt the loneliness the most. However, he wouldn't admit that. He was there little orange ball of sunshine, the one who glued the family together, the one who stayed positive and always had a smile on his face, just to make sure his family wouldn't fall apart. No one ever suspected him for feeling sad or lonely, cause that just wasn't his style.

But he was. He couldn't help but feel that little bit of jealousy every time Raph leaved the lair with Casey, or when Donnie and April shared a moment. Even Leo had found a way to cope, by having long conversations about Miwa with master splinter. Everyone seemed so busy with everyone else lately, and no one had ever time for videogames anymore…

"Are you even listening? Seriously Mikey, this is exactly what I'm talking about! You never listen! You just lock all the thing you don't wanna here out of your head! But this is serious, and you need to grow up!"

… Grow up… That last sentence seemed to leave an echo inside his mind. They still treated him like a kid, a kid who needed to stop goofing around, and start acting more mature. But he didn't want to grow up, he wasn't ready yet…

"Hey Leo chill, I think he's had enough already." Raph interrupted the leaders ranting, by pushing him slightly on the plastron.

"And what was that for?" Leo now yelled at Raph, who looked him strait in the eyes.

"You're going to far man! Hey, I know the knucklehead screwed up, but this isn't gonna get any better with you yelling at him!" Raph pointed out, as he poked Leo on his forehead.

"Oh yeah, then what is? What do you think would work then? Knocking some sense into him?"

"Hey I didn't say anything about beatings!"

"Oh really, cause as far as I know, that's all little Raphie knows anything about!"

"Okay that's it; I've had enough of your crap! This is between you and me now!" Raph started to walk closer to Leo, who just stood his ground with an expression that said, "I don't care, just give me all you got."

"Stop, both of you! Can't we just have one day without you two fighting?" Donnie intervened, only to get two angry "Shut up Donnie!" thrown back in his face.

"No one here ever listens to me, you never have, and you never will!"

"Maybe that's because you're so full of crap, or maybe you just aren't meant to be the leader!"

"Why can't you two just shut up already, this is getting out of hand, again!" Donnie yelled, for then getting a fist planted right in the face…

'They are fighting again, and yet again because of me. I keep thinking that I'm the one who keeps us together, but could it possibly, just maybe be me who makes the family fall apart? No, it can't be, I aren't trying to destroy us, I aren't doing it on purpose!'

All while the brothers were shouting and fighting each other, poor Mikey was standing in the background holding his banging head tightly. All the hard words seemed to be somehow filling every free spot inside his head, until it finally got to the point, where it was completely filled up. His head was about to burst, but no one seemed to even realize the pain he was feeling. It was almost like being invisible; no one realized you were there, listening to all the ugly words the three brothers could come up with.

"Quiet down, do as a ninja and quiet down." He whispered, his head hurting too much to actually yell it.

"You are an awful leader Leo! You always was, and always will!"

"And you Raph, you are a terrible, temperamental turtle!"

"Okay that's it, you're gonna regret ever being born!" With that, Raph pushed Leo hard enough to make him tumble right into Mikey who stood right behind him, making him stumble right into the sofa behind him.

Then finally, Splinter entered the living room.

"What is happening in here? And why are you all so filthy!"

"Ask the jerk who thinks I'm a terrible temperamental turtle!"

"No, ask the big bull who's only friends is his fists!"

"No Sensei, don't ask any of them, nothing smart will ever come out of those ill-favored potty mouths!"

"Quiet, all of you!" They went quiet. "Now tell me, why is Michelangelo crying?"

"What are you talking about Sensei, Mikey aren't crying." Donnie stated. First then they realized the little orange clad lying on the floor besides the sofa, holding his head as if someone had hammered it against a wall.

"Then what do you call this? What did you do to Michelangelo? Answer me my sons!" Splinter was clearly mad by the lack of answers, but nonetheless, none of them seemed to have the answer he was looking for.

"…I am very disappointed in all of you. Go make yourself clean, you smell."

With that they leaved to get a shower. Splinter stayed with his youngest son, hoping to get an explanation from him about his sudden mood change.

"My son, what is bothering you? Did you hit your head?"

"… Go away dad, I don't wanna talk to you. I just… I w-wanna be alone, okay?" With that he slowly stood up and went in the direction of his room, not really caring how filthy he was, he could always take a bath later, because right now, he didn't need his brothers, he just needed to be all by himself…